Vietnam has been given the go-ahead to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) and could be installed as its 150th member by early November. The move would bring to an end a 12-year journey for Vietnam which hopes membership will help it maintain its rapid economic growth. A meeting of the WTO's main negotiating group approved the terms of Vietnam's membership at a meeting in Geneva. It had introduced all the necessary reforms, the trade body said. Formalities are expected to be completed by the body's executive council. 'Extensive' commitment Vietnam has set out its intention to leave the ranks of the world's poorest countries by 2010. It has Asia's fastest economic growth outside of China, with its economy set to grow by 7.8% in 2006, according to the Asian Development Bank. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk

Israel has denied that shots were fired during an incident in which Israeli fighter jets were alleged to have buzzed a German naval vessel. Israel confirmed that an incident took place but denied reports that the Israeli jets fired two shots. The two countries' defence ministers have reportedly discussed the incident. Germany sent navy but not ground forces to join the Lebanese peacekeeping mission because it wanted to avoid any chance of a clash with Israeli forces. Sensitivities remain over Germany's Nazi past. Helicopter alert The German newspaper Der Tagesspiegel revealed that an incident took place on Tuesday this week, quoting a German junior defence minister as saying two Israeli F-16 fighters had flown low over the German ship, firing twice. The German ship - an unarmed reconnaissance vessel - adopted defensive measures, the report said. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6091130.stm

Australian wheat farmers suffering under the worst drought in a century were preparing to reap their smallest harvest since the mid-1990s, a commodities forecaster said Friday. Only 10.5 million tons will be harvested in the financial year that began July 1, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics said, compared with 28 million tons grown in the previous year. If the figures hold, it will be the smallest crop since 1994-95. ...http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2610960

Tim Blixseth, a rags-to-riches timber baron, likes the good things in life, and he likes having them to himself. He lives on a private 18-hole golf course near Palm Springs, California. He also controls a ski resort in Montana called the Yellowstone Club that he shares with a hand-picked group including Microsoft Corp. chairman Bill Gates. The mountain has 13 lifts. Trail names include Learjet Glades and Ebitda, which is Wall Street shorthand for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Members can play golf and fish in the Gallatin, a river featured in the Robert Redford film ``A River Runs Through It.'' Security is run by Bruce Bales, a U.S. Secret Service veteran. Bales's new title: director of privacy. Now, a feud has broken out up on Blixseth's mountain. Yellowstone Club member Greg LeMond, the first American to win the Tour de France, says Blixseth, 56, has ...http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=am9JkhotUrPs&refer=exclusive

Four US firefighters have died in a forest fire near Palm Springs, California, which authorities say was the work of arsonists. Thousands of acres have burned around the town of Cabazon, some 125 miles (200km) east of Los Angeles. Hundreds of families have been forced to leave their homes. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger paid tribute to the dead firefighters saying Californians were "heartbroken". A murder inquiry has been launched. More than 700 firefighters were sent to the scene on Thursday. The flames spread rapidly, fuelled by strong winds, high temperatures and dry conditions. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6090116.stm

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said the Afghan people are "hurt and saddened" by the deaths of a number of civilians in a Nato air raid. Nato has confirmed that at least 12 civilians were killed in an air strike targeting Taleban militants on Tuesday. But the government said initial investigations suggested 25 civilians died in the raid in south Afghanistan. On Friday, 14 people died in Uruzgan province when their bus struck a mine, officials said. The dead were mainly children and old people travelling to a picnic in celebration of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, a local official said. A Nato spokesman said it was not clear if the mine was old or had been planted recently by insurgents. Mr Karzai responded to Tuesday's deaths during a news conference at the presidential palace. "We share solidarity with the families of the victims and the people of Afghanistan are hurt and saddened by this incident," he said. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6091474.stm